September 2011 - The Planning Continues! (2nd Thread)

[BorkBorkBork]

janabananas - Sorry your ex is being a pain. There are definitely a lot of great $ saving tips for eating while on vaca at wdw. Are you going to have a car?

We had a Mulan party yesterday. My 12 yo set up a "training to be a warrior" obstacle course, they drew pictures of their family guardians, and we ate some chinese food with chopsticks) while we watched. We all forgot how much we liked that movie

Still waiting for an answer. made some back up ADRs for Nov just in case but optimistic.

That Mulan party sounds like a lot of fun! You guys must be a creative bunch Much pixie dust for everyone going through extra stress this week.

 

[janabananas]

Jana - I'm sorry about your ex and what he is pulling, thats terrible I'm glad you're still able to go! I've seen some threads around the board about eating on a budget, and I'm sure google would find a bunch to help you work better with the smaller budget.




Does anyone have any input about a quick beach stay before disney? We've been going back and forth on this since we booked our trip (last september) and had ruled it out, but now we're leaning toward going again. I really think the boys would have a blast. We'd only go for one day (day before we check in) and we drive and already have the time off so none of that is an issue, but we're having issues deciding on which beach, and if it would be more hassle than its worth. We'll already be stopping to see my grandparents on the drive down and then in Georgia over night, so I worry that at that point we might just be ready to get to Disney and settle in! But again, I think the boys would be amazed (my oldest has been on a cruise and "swam" in the ocean but he was 10mo so he obviously doesn't remember). We probably won't book the hotel until the week before when we can see what the weather was doing - Igor was churning in the Atlantic on last trip so all the beaches on the Atlantic side were closed for swimming so I'd like to avoid that if we do go (of course I'd like to avoid any hint of a hurricane!).

Anyway - any input would be appreciated! Worth it to go? no? Beach/hotel suggestions? Thank you

Thanks for the kind words. I have been reviewing the menus and replanning some things as a contingency. I will be driving, so I will have a car. I had planned on bringing stuff over. May have to bring a bit more!

I live in Melbourne, which is east coast of Florida, about an hour drive due east from WDW, just south of KSC and Port Canaveral. Cocoa Beach is really nice and there are lots of decent (non-scary) hotels in the area. You can drive over to WDW either down the 528 Beachline or 192. We usually miss the direct hit from hurricanes, with the exception of the summer of 2004. The rip currents can get pretty bad though. I really hope you find something you like, and hope I can be of any help in the future.

 

[L-Harper]

Here you go "Mrs Bee"

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2757931

You can stop at each Kidcot station, and they will stamp it. They also wrote a little note to my daughter in their language. Usually something like..."Welcome to France...Home of Belle" etc.

Thank you!!! That is awesome!

Background: I have two boys, and I am no longer with their dad. We have been separated for over two years, and everything is friendly and amicable between us.

Now, as everyone knows, is Back To School time. We have always done a pretty even 50/50 split of school supply/clothes/etc. shopping for the boys.
I budgetted my money and had it put away to pay for my part of this. (BTW kids are expensive, as we all know!!) As well as budgetting money for my birthday trip in September.

I took the boys and got what I said I would and let him know what else was needed. He told me he didn't have ANY!!!! money to get them ANYTHING!!! He HAD!! to buy a new cellphone. It is not for work, he doesn't have to have one for work. He just wanted a new cellphone.

I cried, had a panic attack, got livid, calmed down, and now I am just crushed. I told my boss I was rethinking my vacation now, and he said "HECK NO!! YOU ARE GOING!! You need to get out of this office and do something for yourself for a change."

We do not have an agreement or anything, since we have been able to agree on everything in regards to the boys. He also knows that I won't let the boys go without something they need.

He knew I was saving money for my bday trip, so I guess he assumed I would cover his portion til whenever he could???

This leads to my problem.... The hotel is paid for and I have AP's (at least I do not have to worry about this part of it), but my food budget just got cut drastically. I worked my buns off this summer..... I guess I have to go back to working 50 hours a week......

I know I am lucky that my total trip isn't in jeopardy like I have read that some people are going through. But I am just really pissed right now!!

Good luck! I hope it all works out for you.

I called and talked to two different CMs yesterday, and another this morning, and got matching information on our reservation details, so I thought I'd pass it on. All three CMs told me that I will receive two late notices in the email (probably within five days of the 45 day mark), and around the one week mark I will receive one telling me to call in. Once I do that, and reconfirm the notes placed on my account, they will let it go until about the 35 day mark before they cancel. That makes me feel SO MUCH BETTER! I don't have to spend the next two weeks obsessing about it quite as much!

Yay! I'm so glad that it will work out for you.

 

[Pookasaurus]

Thanks for the kind words. I have been reviewing the menus and replanning some things as a contingency. I will be driving, so I will have a car. I had planned on bringing stuff over. May have to bring a bit more!

I live in Melbourne, which is east coast of Florida, about an hour drive due east from WDW, just south of KSC and Port Canaveral. Cocoa Beach is really nice and there are lots of decent (non-scary) hotels in the area. You can drive over to WDW either down the 528 Beachline or 192. We usually miss the direct hit from hurricanes, with the exception of the summer of 2004. The rip currents can get pretty bad though. I really hope you find something you like, and hope I can be of any help in the future.

You could always get a mickey head cookie cutter and cut sandwiches in the room into mickey shapes and such to make quick meals in the room fun, too. It might not be breakfast with Mickey, but still cute/fun for the kids

Thanks for the input on the beach! We have been leaning toward cooca beach if we do decide to do the beach day since we're not going to want to have to drive 2+ more hours when we leave. If there is a rip current, can you not go in the water at all? I'm not huge on swimming in the ocean in general so I doubt I'd go in far and I have a (will be) 20 mo old and a 4yo so I don't see them doing more than splashing in the surf anyway. Also, do you have any hotel suggestions? We're not picky, we just want something on the beach if we go!

 

[sillylily]

My entire family has decided to get in on the planning stage now, since we're getting so close! We did at least get some things set in stone. Everybody in the family wants the midafternoon break; we'll be going back to the pool or to nap in the heat of the day, so everybody can get a second wind. My DH did, however, veto our nights at the beach, and wants to just stay at WDW and take a day trip to the gulf, which means TWO extra nights onsite. Normally, I would be annoyed by such a diversion, but I’m really not right now. Because I knew it would drive me crazy if I didn’t, I went to our CU yesterday and took out a small personal loan. The loan officer is a good friend of mine, and laughed her booty off when I told her the loan would be open until my next payday. Thankfully they've opened up the extra nights at Pop, so I was able to shake our dates up. So, as of Monday morning, we will be officially paid off AND have more Disney days. Not a bad week at all!

 

[sparks19]

Our experience last year was WONDERFUL which is why we are returning at the same time this year. When I look at friends pictures from other times of the year and see the crowds in the background it makes me go ....

The restaurants were not that busy IMHO. Of course we had ADRs so I wasn't really paying super close attention to the crowds, but I'm sure I would of remembered if it was overwhelming.

We walked on SO many rides! With other wait times being 5-10 minutes. It isn't empty by any stretch, but it is MUCH better than other times! Just use FP for more popular rides, and you will have a fabulous magical time!

I'm so glad to hear this Just a little reassurance lol

I keep having dreams that we get there and it's super packed and my family is dragging behind so we are late and everything is a huge wait and we don't get to do anything

LOL I think I have a problem

 

[disneychic2]

Just got off the phone from Disney. I booked our airtran airfare through them and now airtran has changed our departure time and we'll be getting to Disney even later than originally scheduled. I emailed airtran and they said their policy is to allow passengers to change flights with no additional cost, but that I had to do it through Disney since that's who I booked with. Well, they will only do it without a fee if it is 90 minutes or more and our change was much less than that. So, to change it would have cost us an additional $129.26 per person! So, for future, I'll be booking directly with airtran. Just wanted to pass along the info. I'm pretty bummed, because we usually book that 6am flight and for some reason I booked a 9:30 flight. We like to get there as early as possible...doesn't everyone? Okay, thanks for listening to my rant. I apologize to those who REALLY have something to rant about! Have a great weekend everyone!

 

[Strawberry's mom&dad]

Just got off the phone from Disney. I booked our airtran airfare through them and now airtran has changed our departure time and we'll be getting to Disney even later than originally scheduled. I emailed airtran and they said their policy is to allow passengers to change flights with no additional cost, but that I had to do it through Disney since that's who I booked with. Well, they will only do it without a fee if it is 90 minutes or more and our change was much less than that. So, to change it would have cost us an additional $129.26 per person! So, for future, I'll be booking directly with airtran. Just wanted to pass along the info. I'm pretty bummed, because we usually book that 6am flight and for some reason I booked a 9:30 flight. We like to get there as early as possible...doesn't everyone? Okay, thanks for listening to my rant. I apologize to those who REALLY have something to rant about! Have a great weekend everyone!

We also like to get there as soon as possible. We live near Seattle so we try to take overnight flights to get there in the morning. This trip we had an overnight flight scheduled on Alaska air and they canceled it so we had to take the morning flight. That meant we had to add another night. We were crushed.

 

[BorkBorkBork]

Just got off the phone from Disney. I booked our airtran airfare through them and now airtran has changed our departure time and we'll be getting to Disney even later than originally scheduled. I emailed airtran and they said their policy is to allow passengers to change flights with no additional cost, but that I had to do it through Disney since that's who I booked with. Well, they will only do it without a fee if it is 90 minutes or more and our change was much less than that. So, to change it would have cost us an additional $129.26 per person! So, for future, I'll be booking directly with airtran. Just wanted to pass along the info. I'm pretty bummed, because we usually book that 6am flight and for some reason I booked a 9:30 flight. We like to get there as early as possible...doesn't everyone? Okay, thanks for listening to my rant. I apologize to those who REALLY have something to rant about! Have a great weekend everyone!

That's crazy! I booked my Airtran flight directly through Disney and saved a lot of money. I just checked the flight today and it looks like they moved the departure by 35 minutes (7:35 instead of 7am) and I haven't been notified but we'll see what my ME packet says when it gets here. However, I got 2 roundtrip tickets on Airtran from Milwaukee, booked w/ Disney in March, for $398. That same flight for 2 is listed on the Airtran site today for...$1143!! I can't believe that flight prices fluctuate that much. It's depressing. Who knows what things will be like in 2013 when we get back?

 

[KELLY]

Just got off the phone from Disney. I booked our airtran airfare through them and now airtran has changed our departure time and we'll be getting to Disney even later than originally scheduled. I emailed airtran and they said their policy is to allow passengers to change flights with no additional cost, but that I had to do it through Disney since that's who I booked with. Well, they will only do it without a fee if it is 90 minutes or more and our change was much less than that. So, to change it would have cost us an additional $129.26 per person! So, for future, I'll be booking directly with airtran. Just wanted to pass along the info. I'm pretty bummed, because we usually book that 6am flight and for some reason I booked a 9:30 flight. We like to get there as early as possible...doesn't everyone? Okay, thanks for listening to my rant. I apologize to those who REALLY have something to rant about! Have a great weekend everyone!

We have flown airtran for the past 3 years and they always change our flights. But we don't book threw disney just threw them. They have always been awesome once they changed our flight time 5 minutes and I was able to leave the day before instead and we added a night. We are flying SW this year which reminds me I need to add the check in option to our return flight since we won't be near a computer. So there is another 40.00 but we don't need to pay for bag fees this year and we got a good deal on the flights so I'm happy.

My entire family has decided to get in on the planning stage now, since we're getting so close! We did at least get some things set in stone. Everybody in the family wants the midafternoon break; we'll be going back to the pool or to nap in the heat of the day, so everybody can get a second wind. My DH did, however, veto our nights at the beach, and wants to just stay at WDW and take a day trip to the gulf, which means TWO extra nights onsite. Normally, I would be annoyed by such a diversion, but I’m really not right now. Because I knew it would drive me crazy if I didn’t, I went to our CU yesterday and took out a small personal loan. The loan officer is a good friend of mine, and laughed her booty off when I told her the loan would be open until my next payday. Thankfully they've opened up the extra nights at Pop, so I was able to shake our dates up. So, as of Monday morning, we will be officially paid off AND have more Disney days. Not a bad week at all!

So glad you got things worked out. I had our trip paid of since we got our income taxes but so many things come up with kids and everyday life.

That's crazy! I booked my Airtran flight directly through Disney and saved a lot of money. I just checked the flight today and it looks like they moved the departure by 35 minutes (7:35 instead of 7am) and I haven't been notified but we'll see what my ME packet says when it gets here. However, I got 2 roundtrip tickets on Airtran from Milwaukee, booked w/ Disney in March, for $398. That same flight for 2 is listed on the Airtran site today for...$1143!! I can't believe that flight prices fluctuate that much. It's depressing. Who knows what things will be like in 2013 when we get back?

We are going again next year and I hope we get a good deal on air again.

 

[KELLY]

Well I manage to get a few things done. I make our mousekeeping envelopes today. That took all of 5 minutes. Ran to the gap outlet and got myself some cami's for vacation. I should have bought more they were only 7.00 each they were 60% off. I got 4 of them I have some other sleveless tops I can wear also. Dh don't mind doing laundry on vacation so I don't need to overpack beacuse he usually does it mid week.

Tommorow I making a walmart trip to pick up somemore things. I did get some of the girls clothes together. It is all sitting on my bed. Hope to get some stuff packed tommorow. Not all but some.

3 Weeks from today!!!

 

[thossink]

Question: I have been going over my ADR's and I think I might have a problem. I land at MCO at 3:30p I am taking the DME to the Wilderness Lodge, Can I make my Ohana Resses at 6:30?????

What is your thoughts.

 

[KELLY]

Question: I have been going over my ADR's and I think I might have a problem. I land at MCO at 3:30p I am taking the DME to the Wilderness Lodge, Can I make my Ohana Resses at 6:30?????

What is your thoughts.

Since you are staying at WL I think you can make it but it may be close. Are you taking the boat to the poly. Sometimes it can be a wait. You will probably be at your resort by 5pm so you should be ok.

 

[anjalee6]

Question: I have been going over my ADR's and I think I might have a problem. I land at MCO at 3:30p I am taking the DME to the Wilderness Lodge, Can I make my Ohana Resses at 6:30?????

What is your thoughts.

I think you will be ok. Three hours should be enough time. But as KELLY said, the boat sometimes can take a while.

 

[Marblies]

We are flying SW this year which reminds me I need to add the check in option to our return flight since we won't be near a computer. So there is another 40.00 but we don't need to pay for bag fees this year and we got a good deal on the flights so I'm happy.

We usually fly Jetblue out of Austin. We call it our limo in the sky. This year SW blew us away with $80 each way flights, arrival in the am with late pm departures (gives us almost a whole additional day over JB) AND two bags each free. With the extra luggage room I can bring Ursula for MNSSHP. She is humongous and doesn't pack well. I like shopping around for flights, so I never order them with my package.

 

[basketkat]

Our countdown is down to 48 days today!!! I know some of your countdowns must be getting SO close as we don't go until the end of the month....

I did some sewing today. I made the girls Winnie the Pooh dresses to wear for Crystal Palace.....

I usually use ribbon for the straps, but decided to try using leftover material instead...it was just too cute not to use....

I also ordered my husband's "Captain Hook" costume for MNSSHP...things are coming together!!!!

 

[BorkBorkBork]

Basketkat, WOW! Did you piece/quilt that? I love those fabrics (obviously, since I used some of them too!). I bet you feel better knowing that the dress is done!

 

[anjalee6]

Basketkat,

Your dress is adorable. I wish I was that creative. Nice work. And we are at 53 days! It seems so close, but I think it's because I barely had time to plan this trip. I spent so much time planning our summer trip. But this one is going to be great justvfor the surprise!

 

[DonnaBoo]

Basketkat
I love the dresses for Crystal Palace...they are adoreable. You have such great and creative ideas.
This thread has been great in sharing ideas and keeping us all excited about our trip.

 

[Marblies]

Basketkat, WOW! Did you piece/quilt that? I love those fabrics (obviously, since I used some of them too!). I bet you feel better knowing that the dress is done!

OMGosh. Please tell me it is preprinted, because I am already wondering when you find time to sleep. Girl, you are amazing!